Avatar does have some good science fiction like the idea of a planetary hivemind being worshipped as a god. The Na’vi religion is literally true, it just seems false to humans who don’t know anything. That’s very different to Dune, where the Fremen religion is true because people like Paul’s mum make it true.
I’ll grant that waffer thin idea as a good attempt of putting something akin to good sci-fi into an otherwise solely for visuals work, although I disagree with the notion of deifying something that is tangible, as in the setting put forward in the movie.
And I mentioned Dune because of the immortality mention. The spice is also irreplaceable and unique, produced only in a single planet, through a rather complex organic process, harvested at great risk and cost, then to be synthesized by the tons.
That was good sci-fi, with sound social and religious criticism in it.
If you’ll allow drag to play devil’s advocate, Eywa isn’t tangible. Ewya is a mind, and minds are made of electrical signal patterns. You can’t touch electricity. And you definitely can’t touch a pattern of information, which is essentially made out of maths. That’s what a mind is, a bunch of incredibly complex maths.
allow me to play the idiot-younger-sibling of said devil’s advocate and just point out you can absolutely touch electricity, which is why we use safety plugs to keep toddlers from licking electrical outlets.
in any case, I think the biggest problem with the movie is just how… meh… it was. Hive minds have been done before; and that was allegory for the interconnections inherent in a thriving biosphere. The Unobtanium was allegory for greed. (as was whale brains. maybe that explains RFK’s antics…?) The capitalist douchenozzles were… well… if I said it was allegory, it was so they could beat us upside the head with it.
From what I took from the movie, there was a knowledge that such a collective overarching conscience existed. It wasn’t a figment of imagination nor a collective (de)illusion. It was tangible in that way.
And being cheeky: electricty can’t be touched? i disagree. Every single time I put my fingers where I shouldn’t, it reminded me in very tangible way I wasn’t looking at what I was doing.